Mich & James

College sweethearts Mich and James went back to the place where their love story began and got engaged there. They had a simple church wedding and a modern Chinese reception in Iloilo, paying tribute to their families and their heritage.

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Love Story

During an org-sponsored activity in college, Mich and James were introduced to each other by a common friend. That night, they found out they both stayed in the campus dormitories, and walked back from the event together. They became friends after that, and eventually became a couple.

Six years after they got together, Mich accompanied James back to their school to get a transcript for his sister who lived abroad. But in truth, James was already planning to propose at the place where their relationship began.

The two decided to visit the campus dormitories, because they wanted to see the new dorms that have been built since they were there. James took Mich to one of their old hangout spots that overlooked Marikina and started taking pictures. He then handed the camera to Mich to show her the photos. As she was browsing through the photos in the camera, she came across a picture of a ring. She was about to ask James about the picture when he knelt down in front of her with the same ring in his hand--and finally popped the question.

Wedding Preparations

Like other couples planning a wedding, Mich and James were concerned about sticking to their budget. To stay within their means, the couple did plenty of research about possible wedding details. They kept track of their priorities and classified things under "splurge" and "save" categories, which helped spend their money wisely.

Though some wedding requirements, such as the wedding license and the pre-cana seminar, are only valid within a certain window of time, Mich and James say that it doesn't hurt to prepare these requirements beforehand. "Never procrastinate with your wedding preparations," Mich says.

With the planning that they did, Mich and James wedding was extra special. They paid tribute to their families with their traditional Catholic ceremony and their modern Chinese reception. Since food plays a huge part in Chinese celebrations, the couple had an eight-course Chinese lauriat with dessert. The couple also paid tribute to their parents during the reception by surprising them with gifts. Mich and James' love for each other and their families really showed during their wedding, and that made the event even more memorable.